1.) Album Hangover: Taylor Swift’s folklore

I’ve been a lifelong Swiftie and there have been rollercoasters (Reputation era) – but folklore is a masterpiece. All of Taylor Swift’s discography has always been stunning and thoughtful, but folklore? Yeah, maybe we should keep Taylor Swift in quarantine all the time so she can write more in her storytelling-songwriting style.

mirrorball > betty > seven > august > the last great american dynasty > invisible strings > exile > epiphany > the 1 > peace > illicit affairs > this is me trying > my tears ricochet > mad woman > cardigan/hoax

Special Runner-Up: I finally gave Carly Rae Jepsen’s e.mo.tion. album a spin, and I liked a few of the songs. The album really is, as they say in Ateneo, “pop perfection”.

2.) Book Hangover: Folk of The Air Trilogy

I cited the Folk of the Air Trilogy as my excuse not to write last week, and I finished books 1.5, 2, and 3 that weekend. The concept was interesting and creative, and it was super reminiscent of Sarah J. Maas’ A Court of Thorns and Roses trilogy. The second books of each trilogy had widely different motivations, but stumbled on a strikingly similar ending. I love Feyre and Rhysand, but Jude and Cardan are their amazing, toxic counterparts – so I highly recommend giving this trilogy a shot, if you’re an ACOTAR fan.

Special Runner-Up: I read this book called Jane Austen and Food – it was fascinating and well-written, so I was never bored with it. I’m actually looking forward to a Zoom convention tonight (1 pm abroad, 1 am here :–) ) celebrating Jane Austen’s works, and I think I should skim through this book again.

3.) Show Hangover: The Good Place

I finished all four seasons of The Good Place sometime in May or June, and I really loved it. I appreciated that they had a story they wanted to tell, planned it out, and ended it carefully – without needing to extend the series for long. I loved that they were considered morality and mortality together, and the lessons they wanted to impart to the viewers. It’s the most heartwarming, humorous show I’ve watched in a long time.

Special Runner-Ups: The Derry Girls and The Baby-Sitters Club (Both on Netflix!)

4.) Hobby A: Gardening

As mentioned in a previous post, I’ve taken to gardening. So far, I have been growing:

• Sili, or native chili peppers – from seed, two green peppers have appeared
• Tomato – from seed, growing tall
• Squash (3) – from seed, planted almost a month ago and growing hella fast
• Sitaw, or string bean – from seed, but it’s just starting to take root
• Bell pepper (6) – from seed, planted almost two months ago and are still baby shrubs
• Peppermint – bought, but they were a little weak and are now revived
• Thai basil – bought, still struggling a litle
• Sweet basil – bought, drooping a bit but doing okay
• Vietnam roses – bought and bloomed already, but are having their “down” phase
• Mushrooms – growing on the bamboo planters the roses came in with
• Lavender (2) – bought, over-watered, dying
• Rosemary – bought, over-watered, also dying
• Aloe vera – bought, doing pretty well

Today, I added some of the compost I’ve been mixing into their pots so I’m hoping the plants will grow strong and healthy. Or at least, recover enough.

5.) Hobby B: Knitting

Last week, I ordered a pair of knitting needles for myself and for my sister so we can begin our journey together as spinsters. The yarn I ordered hasn’t come in yet, so we’ve been practicing the basic knit stitch with an old white ball of yarn I had tucked away with my school supplies. So far, it’s not going terribly. And I miss embroidery, but I don’t really have fabric to do that with. It’s nice to learn a new form of needlework, though.